Back to Scotland!

Back when I was still looking for a tour to go to Scotland for the first time, after the tour I'd been hoping for fell through, my mom stumbled across author Douglas Bond's website (for those who don't know/remember, Bond's books are part of what got me so excited about Scotland) and discovered that he does tours, and had led a tour based on locations in his books of Scotland. Unfortunately, I'd missed that tour. But I emailed him telling him about how I loved his books and was disappointed to see I'd missed his tour and I'd love to know about future tours of Scotland.

Then, we found Reformation Tours and I went on that tour. It was amazing, and I think about it often. Almost a year later, the photos from that trip are still my screensaver. Needless to say, I want to go back. I know the experience I had on the Heritage of England and Scotland tour can't be repeated, and I wouldn't want it to be. But I would love to have another travel experience in Great Britain, and see more of Bonny Scotland. But the issue was getting there, because I/we can't afford to take my whole family, and don't want to go alone.

About a month ago, on March 19 (2013), I got an email from Mr. Bond saying that he'll be leading a tour of Scotland next year (2014) with an emphasis on John Knox for Knox's 500th birthday. Needless to say, I was excited.

Since then, I've been praying a lot about whether or not I should go, and trying to determine if I can afford it. There's been a lot of debating with myself and looking at pros and cons. Eventually, it came down to the issue of affordability.

It's going to take a lot of saving, but God's blessed me with some good financial aid, so I don't have to worry about school funds. I've felt nervous, but I finally feel pretty peaceful about going. So I'm working on registering! I say working, because I've been having trouble connecting with the tour leaders to make my reservation, but I'm confident it'll all work out. I don't think God would have made it clear that I can afford to go if I'm not meant to.


So, I'm happy to announce that I'll be going to Scotland again, June 24-July 4, 2014! I'm SUPER excited. Ever since I got back, I've been wanting to go again. And now that's possible, praise God! :D